Readings for today: Matthew 22:15-46, 23:1-39, Mark 12:13-44, Luke 20:19-47, 21:1-4, 13:31-35
One of the great dangers to our nation today is self-righteousness. We seem utterly convinced of our own virtue and our opponent’s vice. We are sure that our cause is good and our opponent’s is evil. Our people, our platform, and our party represents justice, righteousness, and the American Way while our opponents people, platform, and party represents oppression, wickedness, and an existential threat to our way of life. Is it any wonder that our nation is literally tearing itself apart?
Self-righteous people can rationalize just about anything. So convinced of their own good, they set themselves up as judge and jury over those who disagree. So convinced of their own way, they refuse to tolerate any dissent. So convinced of their own virtue, they de-humanize their opposition which then leads to violence and chaos. When you attempt to confront a self-righteous person, they deflect. They refuse to listen. They cannot hear anything that does not fit their narrative. When you attempt to work with a self-righteous person, you will find them rigid, legalistic, and unwilling to compromise. In short, it is their way or the highway. In extreme cases, it is their way or you lose your job. Lose your relationship. Lose your freedom if they have their way. Self-righteousness is the fundamental root of all totalitarian societies.
Sadly, it’s not new. Jesus himself encountered it. Listen to how he describes it in the Gospels. “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:2-12)
Does that sound familiar at all? How many times have we seen political leaders come up with all sorts of ideas they impose on us while exempting themselves from the same rules? How many times have we seen someone in authority say one thing and do another? How many times have we watched as people of influence and power and great wealth act in self-serving and self-promoting ways? We are a nation of hypocrites which is why we find ourselves in the mess we’re in. Jesus calls us to a different path. If we want to be great…truly great…we must become a servant. We must humble ourselves not just before God but before one another. We must decrease so that Christ may increase. We must seek to serve rather than be served.
We have a long way to go, friends. It’s going to take years to dig ourselves out of the hole we find ourselves in. It will take each one of us doing our part. We all bear responsibility for the mess we’ve made. By definition, in a democracy we get the government we deserve. The current political chaos serves as a mirror, reflecting back on us our own worst fears and failures. Change must begin in each human heart. Self-righteousness much be rooted out and replaced with humility and sacrificial love. This is our only hope and it must be our continual prayer if America is ever to thrive again.
Readings for tomorrow: Matthew 24-25, Mark 13, Luke 21:5-38